FRANCISm & fEnglish, FrenchEnglish form of the Late Latin name Franciscus which meant "Frenchman", ultimately from the Germanic tribe of the Franks, who were named for a type of spear that they used... [more]

FRANK (1)mEnglish, German, Dutch, FrenchFrom a Germanic name which referred to a member of the Germanic tribe, the Franks. The Franks settled in the regions now called France and the Netherlands in the 3rd and 4th century... [more]

GISELLEfFrench, English (Modern)Derived from the Germanic word gisil meaning "hostage" or "pledge". This name may have originally been a descriptive nickname for a child given as a pledge to a foreign court... [more]

GUSTAVEmFrenchFrench form of GUSTAV. This name was borne by the French artist Gustave Doré (1832-1883).

GUYmEnglish, FrenchNorman French form of WIDO. The Normans introduced it to England, where it was common until the time of Guy Fawkes (1570-1606), a revolutionary who attempted to blow up the British parliament... [more]

JADEfEnglish, FrenchFrom the name of the precious stone that is often used in carvings. It is derived from Spanish (piedra de la) ijada meaning "(stone of the) flank", relating to the belief that jade could cure renal colic... [more]

JEAN (1)mFrenchFrench form of Jehan, the Old French form of Iohannes (see JOHN). The French philosophers Jean-Jacques Rousseau (1712-1778) and Jean Paul Sartre (1905-1980) were two well-known bearers of this name... [more]

JOCELYNf & mEnglish, FrenchFrom a Germanic masculine name, variously written as Gaudelenus, Gautselin, Gauzlin, along with many other spellings. It was derived from the Germanic element Gaut, which was from the name of the Germanic tribe the Gauts, combined with a Latin diminutive suffix... [more]

JUDICAËLmFrench, BretonFrench form of the Old Breton name Iudicael, derived from the elements iud "lord, prince" and cael "generous". This was the name of a 7th-century Breton king, also regarded as a saint.

JULES (1)mFrenchFrench form of JULIUS. A notable bearer of this name was the French novelist Jules Verne (1828-1905), author of 'Twenty Thousand Leagues Under the Sea' and other works of science fiction.

JUSTINmEnglish, French, SloveneFrom the Latin name Iustinus, which was derived from JUSTUS. This was the name of several early saints including Justin Martyr, a Christian philosopher of the 2nd century who was beheaded in Rome... [more]

LOUPmFrenchFrench form of the Late Latin name Lupus which meant "wolf". Lupus was the name of several early saints, including a 5th-century bishop of Troyes who apparently convinced Attila to spare the city.

MARGAUXfFrenchVariant of MARGOT influenced by the name of the wine-producing French town. It was borne by Margaux Hemingway (1954-1996), granddaughter of author Ernest Hemingway, who had it changed from Margot.

MAURICEmEnglish, FrenchFrom the Roman name Mauritius, a derivative of MAURUS. Saint Maurice was a 3rd-century Roman soldier from Egypt. He and the other Christians in his legion were supposedly massacred on the orders of emperor Maximian for refusing to worship Roman gods... [more]

MAXENCEmFrenchFrench form of the Roman name Maxentius, a derivative of Latin maximus "greatest". This was the agnomen of an early 4th-century Roman emperor, a rival of Constantine... [more]